MIAMI—In case you wondered just how hot Miami's commercial real estate market is, here's a clue: one law firm advised on acquisitions, dispositions and development deals valued in excess of $8 billion in the last 18 months alone.

“The past 12 to 18months saw one of the most active periods of development in Miami's history,” says Bilzin Sumberg Real Estate Chair Jim Shindell. “From hotel redevelopment in Miami Beach, residential projects rising in Brickell, dozens of trophy office properties being refinanced throughout Miami, and mixed-use construction taking shape in downtown and the Design District, there is virtually no area in the city left untouched by the current cycle…”

Indeed, Bilzin has worked on some of South Florida's most significant commercial real estate transactions, including assisting Miami Design District Associates (MDDA), a partnership between visionary developer Craig Robins and L Real Estate in the sale of a 20% equity interest in MDDA to a joint venture between General Growth Properties and Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp. for $280 million.